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PageData: NHL Playoff Teams Go Head-To-Head On Facebook

While 8 National Hockey League teams remain in the hunt for the Stanley Cup, the clubs are also battling it out on Facebook. Fans all over the world flock to the teams’ Facebook pages for scoring updates, photos, as well as other updates throughout the playoffs. Using PageData statistics, let’s take a look at who has been winning the matchups in the second round of the playoffs both on the ice and on the social network.

San Jose Sharks vs. Los Angeles Kings

The Sharks and Kings (the defending Stanley Cup champions) are tied at 2-2 in the best-of-7 series. While the series is evened up, the Sharks are winning the battle on Facebook. San Jose’s team has more Facebook fans, but the Kings are growing in popularity.

The Sharks added the most fans May 6-9, when the team was finishing off a first-round sweep of the Vancouver Canucks. Los Angeles saw the highest increase in likes on May 15 and 17, the days after their first two victories over the Sharks in the semifinal round.

San Jose peaked in the people talking about this metric on May 12 (108,840), which was between the Sharks’ sweep of Vancouver and the start of the series with the Kings. Los Angeles hit a PTAT high (89,430) on May 15-16, the day after the Kings won game 1 and the day of game 2.

Chicago Blackhawks vs. Detroit Red Wings

Detroit leads Chicago 2-1 in the series, which also happens to be its score in PageData’s comparative analysis. The Red Wings lead the Blackhawks in the number of fans, new fans today, and definitely in PTAT.

The Red Wings, 11-time NHL champions, added the most fans on May 13 (one day after the team defeated the Anaheim Ducks in the first round), May 14, and 21 (the day after the team’s most recent victory over Chicago). The Blackhawks added the most fans on May 1, a day after the team beat the Minnesota Wild in game one of the opening round of the playoffs. Chicago also saw a spike in Facebook fans on May 16, the day following the Blackhawks’ lone victory over Detroit.

With more than 1.3 million fans, the Red Wings are the most popular NHL team on Facebook — but rank only 86th in terms of pro sports teams on the site.

Detroit has crushed Chicago in terms of PTAT. From May 16-22, the Red Wings’ PTAT metric has remained a steady 174,410. The Blackhawks’ highest PTAT during the postseason has been 57,141 on May 10, the day after Chicago finished off Minnesota in the first round.

Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Ottawa Senators

The Penguins lead the Senators 2-1 and are dominating the opposition on Facebook. Pittsburgh has roughly 1.2 million fans, compared to Ottawa’s paltry 175,968.

Pittsburgh gained the most likes (771) of the postseason on May 15, a day after the Penguins took game one of the semifinals over the Senators. Ottawa saw the most new fans on May 6, the day after the team took a 2-1 lead over the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs.

Much like Detroit, Pittsburgh is way out in front of Ottawa in terms of PTAT. Since May 16, two days after the Penguins won game 1 of the semifinals, the team’s Facebook PTAT has remained a steady 140,575. Ottawa’s highest PTAT (44,383) was achieved May 13-15, the days surrounding game 1 of the current round.

Boston Bruins vs. New York Rangers

Boston leads the series 3-0, and appears poised to sweep the Rangers Thursday. On Facebook, however, New York is a more successful squad. Though Boston has 1.35 million fans, the Rangers are gaining more likes recently and rate higher in PTAT.

The Bruins had their most successful day in terms of new Facebook fans on May 14, when the team added 2,839 fans two days after Boston defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs in an exciting overtime battle in the decisive game 7 of the first round. New York added its most like of the playoffs that same day, which was right after the Rangers finished off the Washington Capitals in their own game 7.

In terms of PTAT, both teams have leveled out to be roughly equal. Currently, the Rangers have a PTAT metric of 168,226 and the Bruins are at 164,087.